EPT11 London: No double for Cody, out in fifth

The tournament room at the Grand Connaught is a quieter place right now, for the nearest thing it had to a local hero is out.

Jake Cody is the fifth place finisher, the Team Pro falling agonisingly close to a second EPT title, but too hurt by a pot against Kevin MacPhee's flush to make it those last few steps. He departed a short while ago with £133,800, and about a dozen friends ready to cheer him up, or help him drink through it.

Jake Cody moves all-in

His girlfriend Alex was also waiting for him on the rail. She knows the drill in these instances, and understands that, while he'll beat himself up for a while, going over every conceivable thing that he could have done differently, it will soon dawn on him that it was a great performance and a great result. For her it was not about what could have been, but a day to be more than proud.

And now--like an accidental mark of respect--the noise from the rail is suddenly muted. Cody brought with him the bulk of the support and the bulk of the noise. Now, while a few hands get polite applause, there is none of the boisterous cheers and cat calls that had propelled Cody through nearly eight hours of play. It was a great performance regardless of the result, and to watch it, well, bliss was it that dawn to be alive.

And now the Main Event plays on without him. Those looking for history to be made will look instead towards MacPhee, the tall exhausted looking American whose anorak makes him look like he's ready to leave at any moment, but who plays like he'll be here forever.

MacPhee and Cody (foreground)

He's now three places away from that same double that eluded Cody, as play continues.

Follow the action from the EPT London Main Event this week on the PokerStars Blog. You can also watch live coverage on the EPT Live webcast between October 14-18 on PokerStars.tv.